Ghost of You
by Fullelven
Summary: A story of my Healadin on Ravenholdt server, Shaaira. This is the beginning of her journey and what set her struggle in place.
1. Chapter 1

**Title: Ghost of You**

**Author: CarthsLostPadawan**

**Summary: The Day Shaaira's life changed forever, the day her brother died.**

"Josha!"

The tiny Quel'dorei literally lept into the Human Paladin's arms as he entered into the modest home in little Tyr's Hand. Adorned in the most majestic armor she'd ever seen, Shaaira wondered if her brother looked like that too wherever he was stationed. She let her tiny fingers trace the different grooves in the gunmetal gray platemail, her eyes lingering on the different fuschia gems that looked like they pulsed with an unknown energy.

"Hey there Shay, how is my little Peanut? Still going to marry me when you're old enough?" He questioned, gazing down at her with his piercing honey-hued orbs. The freckle-faced elf he held made a tired expression and rolled her eyes.

"Uh... duh, Josha! I'ma be five soon!"

He feigned a gasp and smiled softly at her, setting her back down on the ground before putting his hands on his hips. "Five already? Well you better get a move on our wedding plans, or you will be an old lady before we make it to the chapel!" He kissed her forehead and mussed her auburn locks, resulting in her swatting uselessly at his hands.

"Joshua Addison. To what do we owe the pleasure?"

Kreo Chaand'i called as he entered the room, quickly followed by his wife Cirvani. Shaking the hand of his son's best friend, he gave him a smile and a pat on the shoulder. "I thought you and Athanasious were going to be stationed in Stratholme for a few more weeks? Don't tell me he sent you over here to tell us you both are in town while he's off visiting his fiancee first!"

The elder Chaand'i gaffawed at his own words, and Joshua shifted uncomfortably on his feet. "Actually, I am here on the behalf of Athans, but..." he glanced down at Shaaira for a moment, running a plate-clad hand through his short midnight-colored hair. Kreo and Cirvani looked down at too at their tiny daughter before glancing worriedly at one another.

"Uh... honey, why don't you go upstairs and play while we talk with bubby's friend?" Her mother suggested gently, a slight shake in her voice. This elicited a stern frown on their toddler's face as she headed over and grabbed Joshua's hand.

"He's gonna be my hubban, its okay. We hafta hear da same things so we don't fight," she stated matter of factly. The young protection Paladin smiled sadly at her before he crouched down to her height.

"It's okay, hun. I promise whatever is said, I won't argue about it later. Go on and do what Mrs. Chaand'i said, you can plan our wedding while you're gone."

She looked up at him, dark sapphire hues seeming to contimplate his words as she crinkled her nose in thought. "Hmm... alright. But call her Mommy, cause when we're married, I'ma share her with you." She gathered up her dolls in her arms and skiped off towards the stairs, leaving the adults to stand in silence for several moments until the sound of her footsteps disappeared.

"Now go on, Joshua, what is wrong? There's something wrong with Athanasious isn't there?" Cirvani began, her face paling slightly. Already pale, it caused her fiery red hair to stick out further in contrast to her fair skin.

"I have a letter here that Athans wanted to give you, along with a box with the things that he had left in the barracks," he started quickly, handing them a piece of folded parchment from the tiny pack he carried with him. Kreo took the note and turned to walk from them, reading silently to himself as his wife merely stood staring with a look of panic on her features.

"What has happened to him?!" She insisted looking between the two men. Joshua swallowed hard, looking away from the woman who's worry seemed to escalate with each passing moment.

"He -"

"He's dead Cirvani," Kreo interrupted, handing her the note. "He's gone..." His voice cracked and he found himself needing to rest his weak legs against the side of their couch. Her cyan eyes looked at the note, traveling along the words, but not really seeing what was written on the page. She shook her head, a shaking hand coming to her mouth.

"H-how..."

Joshua offered her a hand, wrapping an arm around her shoulder as he assisted her to the chair just beside the door to sit down. His heart broke as he found her trembling, feeling helpless to ease their pain. "The food supply has been contaminated in Stratholme. Many citizens have already contracted the plague and died within three days... unfortunately, he suffered a fate no different."

"Oh God..."

Kreo moved slowly, emptily across the room to kneel before his wife as she broke into uncontrollable sobs. "His body?" He asked softly, holding Cirvani close, his own voice showing he was close to tears himself.

"Burned, Mr. Chaand'i. I am sorry, but with those who fall to the plague, we have no choice but to do so immediately or they arise with the curse of Undeath soon thereafter," he watched them, the elves that had become like parents to him since they had moved to Tyr's Hand to be closer to their son and found himself needing some fresh air. "I have another letter he wrote for your daughter and his polearm that he specifically requested she have."

"Oh... what are we going to tell Shaaira? They were so close, this is going to break her little heart." Cirvani whispered between her tears. Joshua placed a soft hand on her shoulder, his brown eyes looking misty themselves.

"You can't hide it from her, but if you need for me to tell her, I will talk to her."

A tiny, roughly sewn doll sailed through the air, lightly colliding with his shoulder before falling lamely to the floor. He bent down, picking it up as he chanced a glance at the top of the stairs, a dread feeling his heart before he even saw the teary-eyed four-year-old. She picked up another doll, tossing it and missing.

"I hate you, Josha! You promised! You promised you'd protect At'ans!" Shaaira screamed through her anguished crying, taking another doll to throw it, this one not even making it to his feet. "You're a liar!"

"Shaaira!" Kreo gruffly yelled at the distrought child, but Joshua shook his hand and stepped before him.

"No... its fine. It will take time, but she will understand."

Out of dolls to throw, the girl kicked the railing before taking off in a sprint down the hall and slamming the door to her bedroom. The sound resonated softly throughout the house, hanging heavily on the solemn air.


	2. Chapter 2

Ornate statues, brilliant golden fixtures that glistened and glittered in the bright sunlight... Silvermoon City, though in the process of being rebuilt from the ruins of Arthas's attack, was magnificent in every sense of the world.

Far better than the nasty Tyr's Hand that Shaaira had grown up in.

"Come along girls," Kreo said when he noticed the his daughters had not continued following him into Farstrider's Square. Shaaira's sapphire-hued eyes fixated on him and gripped the toddler's hand at her side tightly.

"Lets go Meirelle. Perhaps Father will let us explore later on."

She started on after the man who seemed to have grown worn and haggard since the death of Cirvani, his wife and mother of both Shaaira and Meirelle. Becoming introverted and cold, it seemed almost as if he lived his every day looking for a way to bring back his old life, before the struggles and hardships of war and famine took away everything that ever mattered to him...

...and left him with two children he knew nothing about caring for.

"No, Shay!" Meirelle protested for a moment, a tiny golden flash releasing from her littler hand and causing Shaaira to pull away. Her flesh was red and raw from the bit of holy that her younger sister had burned her with. With a quick glance towards Kreo, she knelt down and picked the girl up on her hip.

"Mei... what did we say about that?"

She pouted, her fire red hair falling into her eyes. "Its a secret." Shaaira hurried to catch up with him, carrying her sister still.

"Right. And who do we not let see the secret?" Mei chanced a look back up at the older Chaand'i and made a thoughtful face.

"Papa?"

"Right, you've got it kiddo." She mussed her red locks up, eliciting a giggle from her as they followed their Father passed where they had seen him train within the new Blood Knight Order Lady Liadrin had formed. Neither child knew a whole lot about it, but from how the head of their modest House spoke, they were in a war and he was dead set that he'd found a way to let Athan's legacy live on.

They followed him through a marble doorway just north of his normal area of training, following him down a winding stairway into somewhere they could only guess was restricted access. Long dark halls adorned with vividly colored silk tapestries lined the navy and gold walls on their way down, and for the first time, Shaaira was slightly glad for their father's decision to move them here. It was beautiful, and the home that they had fixed them up with was nicer than anything they'd seen before.

"Huh! Shay! Do you hear it?"

Shaaira looked around, trying to find what it was that had given her sister such an astonished look in her eyes, but she found nothing. Kreo only stopped before a doorway into a larger room and smiled. "There may be hope for you yet, Meirelle." There was a bit of mirth in his tone that neither had heard for awhile before his voice returned to its gruff and monotone forcefullness once more. "Shaaira, come."

She set Meirelle down, taking her hand with the other that she hadn't hit earlier with her inadverdant spark of holy energy and led her down to where their father was waiting for them. Before her she found a strange being, large and blue that seemed to be suspended in the air though nothing held it. Magisters around it from everywhere silphoned energy from in a continuous stream, yet their source never seemed to tire, never protested.

"This is M'uru, a being called a Naaru. Lady Liadrin has graced us with a solution to your iproblem/i," Kreo informed with an unreadable look towards her. She paled, looking at the being with a frown.

"A solution?"

He nodded and led them further into the room before a rather young and energetic looking Magister approached them. "Kreo! Let me look at you, a Knight already. It seems like you were just a hopefull when we met."

"Alastor Bloodsworn. These are my daughters, Meirelle and our newest hopeful, Shaaira."

"W-what?" Shaaira looked at him with disbelief in her eyes, wondering if she had heard him correctly.

He smiled politely at Alastor who bent down to take Meirelle's hand. "How about you and I go get some ice cream? I have some Tigule and Foror's Strawberry Ice Cream upstairs." The little girl seemed to seriously contimplate this before grasping his hand and nodding.

"Kay," she said simply as he hoisted her into his arms and carried her away. Kreo waited until the two of them were gone before turning back towards M'uru.

"You of all people understand what the loss of Athan's what to me. He was the one hope of having our name remembered, especially with your... ihandicap/i." He began, Shaaira looking down at the ground as he hinted at her lack of affinity for magic. She'd been born numb to everything magic, rather it be wielding it or sensing it.

"I am sorry I cannot be Athanasious, Father."

There was a long silence between them before he placed a hand on her shoulder. "Now apparently I have another magically bereft daughter who is the cause of the loss of my dear Cirvani..." He takes a deep breath. "Now you can give me something back that I lost. Join the Blood Knights, take M'uru's light. You will have a purpose and better yet, it will be like Athans never left us."

Shaaira kept her eyes on the floor, almost wanting to shy completely away from her Father's touch. What he was doing was wrong, a child as she may have been, even she could see that. Somewhere along all the heartache and pain, he'd lost his sense of the future and only sought to reclaim the past.

Hopefully she could save Meirelle from being another sacrafice of his.

"Alright, Father."

For the first time in a long while, he smiled, leading her forward into the room. To her Father, she was a bit of hope at having his boy back again, to he Magisters, she was nothing but a nameless experement.

But to herself, she was nothing. She was just Shaaira Isis Chaand'i and she existed only to serve.


End file.
